1. Technical Field
The invention relates to vacuum cleaners. Particularly, the invention relates to vacuum cleaner hose and tool storage. Even more particularly, the invention relates to a hose and tool caddy which may be easily mounted on or removed from an upright vacuum cleaner.
2. Background Information
It is well known that vacuum cleaners typically fall into one of several categories, including uprights, canisters, and sticks. Upright vacuum cleaners are generally perceived as providing superior floor care. Canister cleaners are generally perceived as providing a certain degree of flexibility in use, accommodating both floor care and above-the-floor cleaning. Stick cleaners are generally perceived as providing for quick cleanup of floor surfaces and the like, and are appreciated for their ease of storage and ready availability.
To increase the popularity of upright cleaners and eliminate the perception that upright cleaners could only be used for floor care, or were difficult to change from floor care to above-the-floor cleaning, valve arrangements, such as that shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,134,750 assigned to a common assignee, were added to upright cleaners. These valve arrangements allowed upright cleaners to be easily changed between the floor care and above the floor cleaning modes. However, the above-the-floor cleaning mode typically requires an accessory hose and accessory tools, such as a crevice tool, dusting brush, furniture nozzle and extension wand.
The problem with including valve arrangements on upright cleaners then became storage of the hose and accessory tools. Typically, the hose and tools were stored in a closet or drawer and were not readily available when the vacuum cleaner was in use. Thus, on-board hose and tool storage, such as a tool caddy or a tool storage compartment, was developed allowing hoses and accessory tools to be stored directly on upright vacuum cleaners. Examples of on-board hose and tool storage are shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,137,156, U.S. Pat. No. 5,233,722, U.S. Pat. No. 5,247,719, U.S. Pat. No. 5,303,447 and U.S. Pat. No. 5,331,714, assigned to a common assignee.
Although it is convenient to have the hose and accessory tools mounted directly on upright vacuum cleaners, there may be instances when upright cleaners are only being used in the floor care mode. In such a case, it may be undesirable to include the extra weight of the hose, accessory tools and tool caddy on the cleaner.
Therefore, the need exists for a hose and tool caddy which may be mounted on an upright vacuum cleaner allowing the hose and accessory tools to be easily accessed for above-the-floor cleaning, or which may be easily removed from the upright cleaner when the upright cleaner is only being used for floor care.